Known in the present state of the medical art are instruments for suturing human organs with metallic staples, wherein the part of the organ being resected is cut off mechanically, i.e., by a knife after suturing (cf., e.g., USSR Inventor's Certificate No. 511,939). However, when applying such suturing instruments it is extremely difficult to use an electrotome or plasma scalpel or a laser beam as the cutting instruments. On the other hand, it is common knowledge that mechanical dissection fails to provide an aseptic and bloodless incision.
Another apparatus for staple suturing and dissecting by virtue of a laser beam as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,143,660, is known to comprise a staple body and a supporting body, each being separately applied to the organ operated upon and joined together by a special locking device, a cutting instrument, an optical waveguide for a laser beam or a mechanical knife traversable along the staple body. However, such an apparatus cannot successfully be applied for resections in hard to access places (such as the cardiac portion of the stomach, the small pelvis, thoracic cavity). In addition, resection of human organs with the use of the apparatus according to said patent requires extensive mobilization of the organ operated upon which involves considerable traumatization of the surrounding tissues, increased loss of blood and complicated operative techniques.
Another apparatus for suturing the gastric walls with pi-shaped staples and resection as described in USSR Inventor's Certificate No. 209,629, comprises a cutting instrument and a suturing unit for the organ being resected which incorporates an oblong die provided with depressions for staples to bend, a staple body with a magazine and a staple ejector, said staple being mounted on its holder comprising a member arranged parallel to the die and rigidly held thereto, and another member arranged square with the first one in the plane of movement of the staple body.
However, the construction features of said apparatus fail to provide an aseptic incision of the tissue operated upon, since the member arranged parallel to the die and the other member arranged square with the former one are interconnected square with each other so that the former member along with the staple body lie in the same plane, that is, in the plane of movement of the staple body, which prevents the application of a change cutting instrument, in particular a laser beam, whereby an aseptic incision cannot be produced.